Not as scary, but much better than I expected

Rating: Null/10 (30 June 2003)

Granted, there aren't a lot of contenders, but thus far, "28 Days Later..." is the best non-documentary I've seen this year, at least until December 18 when "Return of the King" will make me weep like a school girl. ("Capturing the Friedmans" is the undisputed finest motion picture of 2003).
I think after seeing a movie only once, and writing about it the next day, it's important to focus on vagueries like mood:
"28 Days" is simultaneously subtle and over-the-top; deep and shallow as hell; methodically paced and hellaciously quick; poignant and laissez-faire.
I hope most people consult these reviews to find out whether or not "28 Days" is a good movie, rather than a scary movie. Honestly, it's not as scary as I was expecting, but there are several scenes that will make you lose your marbles.
But "28 Days" is a very, very good--borderline great--movie. And this wasn't what I was expecting. Expectations, which are formulated on the concept of genre, cannot be avoided. The posters, commercials, and trailers for "28 Days" make it seem one step ahead of pure genre-schlok like "Wrong Turn".
"28 Days" isn't a zombie movie--rather, it seems to take genre as a subject, as its moods, themes, and ideas constantly shift, without making the film seem pretentious or clumsy. These shifts don't draw attention away from the screen--they draw you into it. Even during really good movies, my mind will inevitably shift back to things in my mind extraneous to the film--that didn't happen once watching "28 Days".
This is perhaps the film's greatest feat. Danny Boyle has revalidated himself as a top-tier, visionary filmmaker with this movie, nearly obliterating the puke-a-thon of "The Beach".
One thing specifically (*MINOR SPOILER*):
A lot of people on imdb are bitching about how derivative this film is. Indeed, the squence in the supermarket is almost a direct reference to George Romero's "Dawn of the Dead". But "28 Days" treats the zombie/rampant consumerism metaphor quite subtly: notice the christmas lights blinking in Hannah and her father's apartment building. They are the visual cue that Selena and Jim notice (they are drawn to them). And inside the apartment, "Frosty the Snowman" is playing on the stereo (powered by batteries, I'm sure). Later in the film, at the military compound, one of the soldiers says that the eggs made him "Feel like it was Christmas".
Don't go see "28 Days Later" because you want to see a scary movie--see it because you want to see a good film--er--digital video feature length narrative.